Percy at the Wheezes
by drcjsnider
Summary: Percy needs a job, George needs some help at the store.  Drabble.  Warning DH Spoilers.


George had a pounding headache. In some ways he was grateful, however, since at least it was a different sickness than the nausea he'd felt since Fred had died three months ago. "Alright then, let's hear the next one."

Percy cleared his throat. "Never-ending parchment, it would keep expanding as long as you needed it to be. You'd never have to worry about running out." He looked up expectantly as his younger brother.

George scratched his head. "Well that one is practical at least. Not really funny. And I'm not sure who besides you and Hermione would ever need it. What else you got?"

The prodigal son, as George insisted on calling Percy, had begun working at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes soon after Voldemort had been defeated. He needed a job; George needed someone to help out in the shop. And although the situation hadn't made much sense to any of their friends or family members, the two brothers decided to give it go. In many ways, Percy was a natural. He was a great bookkeeper, he knew the stock backwards and forwards, he dealt well with suppliers, and while he wasn't a natural salesman, like George, he could handle the register during busy hours.

Percy was completely pants, however, at coming up with new product ideas. George had actually had to send him home with an assignment last night to bring a list of ten new ideas to the store today. He had hoped that if given 'homework' Percy might rise to the occasion and come up with something that didn't reek of being designed by a Ministry ponce.

Unfortunately, all the prodigal's ideas so far were rather lame. Just listening to them had given George his headache. Percy tended to present his ideas as if he were defending himself before the wizengamot. He was so serious, so uptight, and not a little disappointed that George had not recognized his brilliance, that it made the entire afternoon uncomfortable.

Things like this had been so easy with Fred. Even when they had struggled to come up with new ideas, it had been fun. They would bounce concepts and sometimes physical objects off of each other until they'd be rolling with laughter. And it was one of the laws of the universe that the best ideas came when you were laughing so hard that you couldn't breathe. George sighed deeply thinking, not for the first time, that maybe he should sell the shop and take up some sort of work that didn't remind him so much of his twin.

"Well this last one," Percy began hesitantly, "was kind of motivated by you and Fred."

George looked up, lifting both eyebrows.

"Remember when we were younger and you two used to constantly break into my room?"

George gave a little smirk, "I don't believe you were ever able to prove that Perce."

"Yea, well that is what I'm getting to. What if I could have bought a pre-packaged ward to kind of snare anyone who tried to get through my door? It wouldn't do anything dangerous mind you; just provide some evidence that a person had entered a certain room."

George grinned. "Like turning them blue?"

"Or causing their hair to fall out," Percy replied.

"Or causing their nose to grow."

Percy nodded. "It could eventually be developed into an entire line of wards for different situations. Some could make noise, some could cause temporary physical disfigurement, some could silently warn the person who set it – let him know his privacy is about to be violated."

"This is brilliant," George exclaimed, jumping up from his chair. "This is the best concept I've heard since Fred…" his voice trailed off.

Percy looked at his brother sadly. While the entire family had felt Fred's loss, it was so much worse for George then the others. "I never would have thought of it, if it hadn't been for the stunts Fred and you pulled," Percy admitted. "He may be gone, but he left behind a lifetime of inspiration."

George gulped and took a deep breath. He knew that Fred could only be an inspiration, could only continue to live through peoples' experiences, if he kept running and developing products for the Wheezes. And just like that, George realized that the best way to remember Fred and to keep him close by was to keep the store going.

Giving Percy a big grin, George slapped him on the back. "Now that we have the idea, how do we make it happen?"

The End


End file.
